Exposed Zipper Pencil Skirt

So I made myself a skirt.  Another bengaline pencil skirt. The pattern was drafted using a stretch pencil skirt that I have in my closet.  I added a contrast waistband, that angles down in the front.   I also added an exposed metal zipper that runs down the front of the skirt.  As you can see, I inserted the zipper upside down.  The zipper pull is quite large, and I really didn't want it jabbing me in the stomach while seated. To avoid having my skirt unzipped by my children I plan on tacking it down along the zipper line.

I like the skirt. What I don't like quite as much is how it fits my body.  My body has changed with  babies, and unfortunately I haven't put in the time or effort that I need to rebuild my atrophied gluts and abs. My rear just seems to be getting longer and flatter, probably in large part because of sewing and blogging.  I am pretty straight by nature, and I need some junk in my trunk to define my waist....hmmm that probably requires exercise (or a glutimax padded bum enhancer that I see advertised on the spanish channel).

Okay, enough about my rear, more about the skirt.  I had to shorten the zipper a bit to fit the skirt length.  I ended up removing some of the metal teeth with my handy dandy pink tool set.  I found this helpful tutorial on removing zipper teeth and stops. One of the things that I love most about this skirt is how much it cost me.  I spent 20 cents on the zipper (it was on super clearance), and about $2.25 for the black bengaline (remnant at 50% off the sale price).  So I have a brand new skirt for less than three dollars.

With the zipper on the bottom, I can easily adjust the length of the slit in my skirt.  Adding the zipper completely eliminated any need to add a back slit, and was so much easier to do.

So are any of you entering skirts in the Crafter Hours Skirt Week?  I've added a couple, I always want to be more active in participating in online sew alongs and challenges, but I don't usually get around to it.  This time I think I'll make more of an effort.

Happy sewing, and thanks for reading!